Home Office Minister Lynne Featherstone praised the drinks industry for the steps it has taken as part of the Responsibility Deal, and said local communities were best-placed to solve alcohol-related problems, in a speech at the Alcohol Concern conference yesterday.

The drinks industry faces renewed calls for calorie labelling on drinks, following research which shows strong public backing for the measure and a lack of consumer awareness on how calorific drinks can be.

Drinkaware has linked up with the Racecourse Association (RCA) to promote responsible drinking at major horse racing events across the country in a bid to address the growing problem of over drinking at some racing venues.

UK wine buyers will start factoring alcohol content into their buying decisions on the back of a new Responsibility Deal pledge around lower alcohol house wines, says Portman Group chief Henry Ashworth.

Following this week's public backing of the drinks industry by the government for the work it has done to comply with the Responsibility Deal, Harpers is now giving drinks businesses the chance to share and publicise the efforts they have made.

Pernod Ricard UK has once again teamed up with the AA, the national breakdown service, to launch an anti-drink driving campaign for the festive period with a particular focus on raising awareness about the dangers of driving the morning after drinking.